Jonesboro, AR – JonesboroRightNow.com – Those wanting to know how to spot and report severe weather can learn how at the National Weather Service (NWS) Memphis’s upcoming storm spotter/severe weather awareness training in Jonesboro.
Each spring and fall, NWS Memphis conducts in-person and virtual training sessions across its 55-county coverage area for the SKYWARN Storm Spotter training sessions. Started in the 1970s, SKYWARN is a volunteer-based initiative that has about 350,000 to 400,000 volunteers nationwide, who are trained to spot and report dangerous weather conditions to the NWS.
“Storm spotters are the ‘eyes on the ground’ that provide us ground-truth, such as whether or not a tornado has touched down or how large the hail is with a thunderstorm. This type of information helps the NWS warning process and gives communities downstream of a storm potentially more time to seek shelter,” said Todd Beal, warning coordination meteorologist with NWS Memphis.
Beal added that spotter reports work in tandem with the NWS’s warning operations.
“For example, when a spotter reports a tornado on the ground, it often triggers an immediate upgrade to a ‘Confirmed Tornado’ tag to the warning, which saves lives by increasing the urgency of the message,” he said.
The Jonesboro session is one of four in-person sessions to be offered in March, with the others scheduled in Missouri, Tennessee, and Mississippi. All sessions are free and open to the public.
The Jonesboro session will be held on Saturday, March 14, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. in the fellowship hall of Valley View Church of Christ, located at 4500 Southwest Drive. It was rescheduled from its original date of March 7 due to the possibility of severe weather in NWS Memphis’ coverage area. Pre-registration is not required.
During the session, participants will learn the characteristics of severe thunderstorms and other associated threats, severe weather-relevant cloud formations, and how to safely report observations and weather safety practices.
The Craighead County Office of Emergency Management announced the seminar on its Facebook page. It said it had partnered with the Arkansas State University, Poinsett County, and the Mississippi County Offices of Emergency Management in hosting.
“All are invited to attend, especially residents of Craighead, Mississippi, and Poinsett counties, and all A-State campus members,” A-State’s Office of Emergency Management said in a Facebook post regarding the session.
Beal said the classes are designed for both those who are new to the program and those who have taken a class before. It is recommended to retake the course every two years as a refresher, he said. He added that NWS Memphis does not issue storm spotter IDs but can provide certificates of completion for those who may need one.
“We will strongly remind folks at the seminar that the training being provided can make you a trained spotter for NWS…. but NOT a storm chaser,” Anthony Coy, Craighead County Emergency Management director, told JRN. “You can be a trained spotter and report what you’re seeing standing on your front porch. That information is good for us and NWS to advise or confirm if the radar data is being provided correctly.”
NWS Memphis will also be offering two virtual sessions, one on Feb. 25 at 6:30 p.m. and one on March 9 at 6:30 p.m. Pre-registration is required for these classes. Click here to register for the February session and here for the March session.
“We can’t stress enough how important it is for the NWS to receive reports of severe weather,” Beal said. “If you experience severe weather at your location, please report it to the NWS when it is safe for you to do so. Reports can be submitted on the phone, social media, or our webpage.”
Note: This story was updated to reflect the date change for the session.
